Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 15, Number 2, 1 February 1998 — PACIFIC ISLANDERS [ARTICLE]

PACIFIC ISLANDERS

I do not like being called a "Pacific Islander" for a few reasons. First, a "Pacific Islander" could be anyone from the Pacifie area. A person from Tahiti is considered the same as a person from the Philippines. We are not all the same race, however. Being Hawaiian is very special for most Hawaiians. We do not like to be considered "Pacific Islanders" because it lessens the value of being Hawaiian. Second, it makes us appear even more scarce than we already are. There aren't many Hawaiians left. If the world generalizes us, we will not even be noticed as a race. Many people in the continental United States think Hawaiians are just people from Hawai'i. It seems that a white person from Hawai'i could be considered a Hawaiian. I am not a white person; I am of Hawaiian ancestry. My ancestors were here before

the white foreigners eame and colonized Hawai'i. I see more of a shift toward using the "other" category in any form. More Hawaiians, like myself, are fīlling in "Hawaiian." Please e-mail your thoughts to me at hoopale@gladstone.uoregon.edu. Ho'opale Tom Eugene, OR